The ‘Heavy Hitter’ Will Sue Nevada Bar For Right to Keep Slogan

March 17, 2006

The State Bar of Nevada has dared to challenge Glen Lerner, a Vegas lawyer who advertises himself as "The Heavy Hitter" in his television ads. Apparently, they told him to stop using the phrase, saying it was misleading to consumers because there may be heavier hitters out there.

"The bar told me by calling myself ‘The Heavy Hitter’ it was false and misleading because it was stating I’m the only heavy hitter," said Lerner. "It’s beyond ridiculous."

"Beyond ridiculous" is an ironic phrase for Lerner to be using, given the nature of his ads. According to the report, some ads show Lerner "spinning like a human tornado [I prefer "Tasmanian devil"], generating cash for his clients," while others show him cutting checks for his clients as an announcer screams, "Gooooooooaaaaal!" Yet another shows, for some reason, a giant phone falling on an unsuspecting litigant. "They said it created anxiety," Lerner said. "Does the average person really believe a giant phone is going to land on them?" Probably not. Although if I hired him I would not only expect, but demand, that he spin like a Tasmanian devil while generating cash for me.

Lerner says he will sue in federal court to protect his First Amendment rights to free speech. I haven’t analyzed this yet, but actually there are a fair number of cases on point and he probably has a pretty good argument.

Goooooooaaaal!

Lerner’s website, which still uses the term "Heavy Hitter," has a short video ad (none of the above, unfortunately), along with details about Glen. Among other things, it notes that he "got accepted" at Harvard, Dartmouth, Stanford and Duke law schools (although he actually went to Tulane), and that he has worked as a Teamster and a garbageman "to better understand many of the people he would someday represent."